Amazon has refreshed its flagship streaming media device, the Fire TV, for the new year, adding 4K streaming support, a stronger processor, and integrated support for Alexa — the Siri-like digital assistant that was first introduced with Amazon’s Echo home speaker — to what was already a solid little box.

We’ve been testing out the $100 device for the past week, and while we can confirm that what’s new here is great, the gist of the Fire TV remains the same: Like the Fire tablets, it’s the best choice for anyone who’s already invested in Amazon Prime, and a dependable, if annoying, streamer for everyone else.

On a base level, the Fire TV works the same way a Roku, Apple TV, Chromecast, or any other media streamer does. It has a bunch of media apps in its app store, you download the ones you use, and then you can run movies, TV shows, music, and games from them.

For that, the Fire TV works more than fine. The improved internals and advanced 802.11ac WiFi support let it load up and stream content quickly and dependably. Getting through its UI is a breeze, and every game we tested ran smoothly. 4K streaming through Prime Video and Netflix was consistently crisp, and gorgeous, as well — if you have a display capable of showing it. (Though it maxes out at 30 frames per second.)

There’s probably a point where the beefed up processor is overkill for most needs — the Fire TV is fast, but it’s not so fast that it makes a higher-end Roku look outright slow — but it’s nice to have hardware you don’t have to worry about either way.

It could eventually pay dividends for gaming, but much of what’s here are simple ports of mobile games. Most are fun for a quick diversion from your video viewing, but they’re generally tailored toward a phone on the go, not for Playstation-like sessions in front of your TV.

Amazon’s app support is similarly fine, though it still isn’t as automatic as Roku’s store. For most people, it shouldn’t yield any issues. Netflix, Hulu, WatchESPN, Sling TV, HBO Now (and HBO Go), Pandora, Plex, and most of the other apps you probably care about are all here alongside Amazon’s own Prime services. They all work well.

There’s no YouTube app, though, and there probably isn’t one coming considering how Amazon and Google’s cold war is only intensifying. A link to the TV-optimized version you’d find through a smart TV’s web browser is provided instead. There’s also no Spotify and Rdio, so you’re pushed toward Amazon’s Prime Music platform especially hard.

That “especially” gets to the reason why the Fire TV is best for Prime users: Everything about its UI nudges you toward the world of Amazon. Discovery isn't the idea here. Prime Video gets its own section in the main menu, and if you go to the Video tab, its content gets top billing there as well. If you search for something, your results largely consist of what’s in the Prime ecosystem and what’s purchasable through Amazon. (Though services like HBO Go and Hulu are peppered in there on occasion, and Amazon promises more non-Netflix ones will be integrated in the future.) Prime Video also has dibs on “ASAP,” a feature that lets the Fire TV pre-load what it thinks you’ll watch next so it’ll start up immediately. And so on.

All of this is going to feel like one big ad if you primarily use Netflix, but again, you’re not who the Fire TV is for. If you have Amazon Prime and you take advantage of all the bonuses it offers — most of which are worth taking advantage of — the Fire TV is wonderfully convenient. It’s a streamer tailor-made for you, and it makes getting to your media straightforward.

Elsewhere, the remote’s built-in voice search is constantly accurate (which helps, given that the Fire TV’s UI requires some clicking without it), Alexa is both fun and highly useful, and Amazon’s tight set of parental controls are still among the best in this category. An included microSD slot is a nice touch, too — since there's only 8GB of space by default — as is the company’s Mayday customer support.

Ultimately, the Fire TV is still more of a niche device than the Roku. If you’re a card-carrying member of that niche, however, it’s now the best media streamer you can buy.

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